CARROLLTON (CBSDFW.COM) - A generous donation is helping a Carrollton animal shelter find ‘forever homes’ for larger-breed dogs. Operation Kindness is North Texas’ largest and oldest no-kill shelter, and now the kennel is adding a special area for some of the breeds that take longer to adopt.

Blacky is just one of the many dogs at the shelter that needs a new home. But for now, the black lab mix is enjoying the one she has at Operation Kindness. “Because we are a no-kill, every single one of our dogs will find a home, no matter what,” said executive director Sherwin Daryani.

The animal shelter just finished building a new 2,000 square foot addition to its Carrolton kennel. “Having that extra space allows us to save more lives because we can bring in more dogs,” Daryani said. The space, called Bear’s Den, is dedicated exclusively to larger breeds. “Typically anything above 40 pounds we consider a large dog,” Daryani explained. “Because we live in an urban area, our small dogs get adopted a lot quicker. Some of our larger dogs stay with us for a while longer. All of our large dogs that we had before have moved in and now we have twice as many.”

The large-breed kennel was made possible by a $250,000 donation from Norma Carney, a volunteer who adopted a Great Pyrenees named Bear. Bear’s Den is named after the benefactor’s beloved pet. “She fell in love with him and he made a huge impact on her and her husband’s life,” Daryani said. “So, she wanted to give back.”

Through that donation, Operation Kindness can give even more animals, like Blacky, a second chance at finding a family.

Operation Kindness assists about 3,000 dogs and cats each year, and has saved more than 70,000 animals since it opened in 1976.